Information Retrieval: Designing, Querying, and Evaluating Infomration Systems

In my library science class we were given a searching assignment that served to teach us how to utilize Syracuse's library website and perform more accurate searches. This chapter really elaborated on the point of that assignment by explaining how different searches could be performed (with drastically different results received) depending on both the searcher and the organizer.

I had considered before how varied my searches could be through my browsing as a patron or simply a user of the internet. Weedman refers to Google and Yahoo several times throughout her chapter. While I knew that Google operated using certain search criteria that made it so "effective," I didn't realize how connected my search and Google's sorting tools were to one another.

One unique thing about Google is that it has the "I'm feeling lucky" option. For those of you unaware (Hi, Grandpa), this will take you to the first page that would be pulled up in your search if you simply typed it in and pressed enter. However, as Weedman's chapter stressed, this first hit may not necessarily be what you're looking for. She points out, "The exact algorithms are not published, since the accuracy of the algorithms in determining relevance is what gives a search engine its competitive edge over the others" (118). In short, you cannot necessarily predict what Google or Yahoo or any other search engine will offer as answers to your search because they all have a different criteria. Weedman offers this great website that allows you to compare various search engines. Check it out!

While understanding this arrangement may not solve any frustrations I have with Google or Yahoo searching, it directly tells me how I could organize mass information. It's important to understand that uniformity exists only within a search engine's definition of organization. That said, one library could have an entirely different searching program than another. One may work best for that organization, for example, a medical or special collections library. This was also a great chapter for me personally, in that it gave me some basic knowledge on how organized collections operate. I would absolutely keep this information in mind should I ever be able to get involved in organizing...anything!



P.S. This chapter opened with an analogy of organizing a closet. I thought those of you who have seen my closet before might find this amusing. Everything is organized by style, then length, then color.